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Rating

9Overall

10
Applicability

7
Innovation

9
Style

Recommendation

Author Howard Schilit writes in surprisingly plain English, and provides the reader with a toolkit to determine what’s so rotten in Denmark - or on Wall Street. You don’t have to be an experienced reader of financial reports to learn a lot from this book. Schilit offers more than theory; he provides specific examples and case studies. Learn about the manager who reduced future expenses by purchasing $12 million worth of advance postage metering at the end of the year. Find out how "Chainsaw Al" Dunlop drove up the price of Sunbeam stock by creating a $35 million reserve, all while laying off 11,000 employees. Learn the inside story of how Enron became the poster child for corporate wrongdoing. getAbstract highly recommends this book to independent investors, and anyone else who needs to understand how unethical execs cook the books. It may not save you from losing a bundle, but at least you won’t feel like you’re in a battle of wits and devoid of weaponry.

In this summary, you will learn

How to understand the manipulation of fiscal reports and other financial dirty deeds; and

What warning signs you should look for to see if fraud is being perpetrated. Enron, anyone?

About the Author

Howard M. Schilit is a PhD, with a CPA. He is president of the Center for Financial Research and Analysis (CFRA), an independent research organization, and an authority on detecting accounting gimmicks. A former professor at American University, Schilit has been featured in numerous articles and network appearances, and co-authored Blue Chips and Hot Tips. The first edition of Financial Shenanigans was published in 1993.

Summary

Telling Tall Tales You don’t usually think of gray-suited economists or accountants as story-tellers, but they have told some pretty big whoppers on Wall Street lately and it cost investors billions. The Center for Financial Research and Analysis (CFRA) has defined 30 techniques, grouped...